The Factor One handlebar has essentially a 90-degree bend from the tops to the hoods. Around the bend with this Fizik tape, it flares out in the part where there is no adhesive.
I’ve tried to redo this a few times a few different ways, but finding it impossible to get it to lay flat. Is there any trick for wrapping bars like this?
by An_Professional
30 Comments
You need to pull/stretch it tight while wrapping. That’s the only way to get clean bends.
Park Tool has good videos on the process!
Warm the tape first and pull it tight.
Pull it a bit tighter and use a hair dryer to soften it up as you wrap the tight bend
I think a lot of people stop the wrap earlier on deep section aero bars. So instead of wrapping all the way into the flat part, stop about 3 or 4 wraps after the hoods and call it a day.
Need waaay more tension
Smaller steps, and you have to pull it tight. While pulling tight, you have to favor the one side of the tape and stretch it, almost to the point of tearing it. It’s not easy, just take your time and don’t be afraid to unwrap to make a correction.
You need you wrap it tighter. That tape is way too loose. Finishing tape looks awful as well but I digress…
I’ve never had bars like this, but you might consider wrapping it so that the currently loose side is always tight. This will almost certainly cause an area to be exposed on the 90 degree bend. Cut a small piece of tape to cover this area (under the wrapped tape). You might even need two pieces, but this is an approach that some people use for filling voids near the brifters (if necessary, depending on wrapping method).
Alternatively, tape with more elasticity.
You need to wrap it tighter, trust the tape.
Are you meant to put your hands on the flats? If it were me I’d finish it off part way through the bend like on a tt bike
How do you know when you’ve wrapped it to tight it or stretched it too much, it starts to tear. You have a long way to go. I’ve had these bars before and wrapping them was tricky, but stretching as I wrapped made for a clean solid finish.
I have the same bar tape. You can pull pretty hard on it before it rips. You need more winding and more tension and it will get better. 🙂
Just watch Calvin do it : [Calvin Jones](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MzIiv7pewE)
Not a tape expert, but the maths of wrapping straight things around bends is such that narrower strips will have fewer degrees of the curvature to contend with each successive wrap – or at least the loose edges will stick out by shorter distances.
Are there varieties that aren’t so wide that you could try?
Stretch the shit out of the tape is what I do
In also thinking maybe twice as much wrapping. Instead of 1” wraps, overlap so each wrap is .5”
Just an idea it might not work.
Pull harder
Stiff, dense tape like that is very difficult to adjust. Switch to some “stretchy” tape and you will be able to make it lie flat. You need to increase the overlap in sections with tight bends.
I’ll be echo others and suggest pulling harder, and maybe trying different angles as you go. That fizik tape is tough stuff. I have it on two of my bikes and love it. But my bars are more traditional in shape.
Kinda defeats the purpose of having aerodynamic handlebars….
Wild idea here but I’d start the wrap there at the top. Standing over the bike, behind the bars, start at the top and wrap toward yourself so the tape overlaps the edges that are coming loose. Still keep tension so it doesn’t get bunched up but this should solve your problem. I wrapped my bullhorn bars like this and they have a sharp bend as well.
Reverse the wrap. Start on the tops, around to the hoods, then down to the drops.
3/4 cover wrap on the inner bend. 1/4 cover wrap on the outer bend.
Get someone to hold a hair dryer on that spot (keep it moving) while you’re stretching it. It’ll stretch, then tighten up.
Pull it really tight as everyone is mentioning but also work it into the bend by cutting wide angles to “seat” it into the bend and slowly wrapping it around the bar. As you get towards the bottom of the bar you wrap it normal again but pulling it at an angle at the top will help it stay tight more uniformly.
It helps to have a bike stand with a handlebar stop, if not, set the bike with bars against your kitchen table and use your leg to “pinch” the front wheel from moving against the table as you pull the tape.
Bar tape is the one thing I always get a professional to do. Oh and sometimes brake fluid change as I can’t be bothered with the mess!
Need to wrap them tighter.
Bar is ruined send it to me for further inspection
My solution, buy good tape (using SQlab one and its amazing).
Then make Shop do it for you. Its kinda cheap, and once you put a good quality tape by a pro, it will hold up few years without a problem.
I was taught to start from the top of the bars (closest to the stem). It solves this problem and also doesnt require taping it at the top to finish it off. I never super understood why people start from the bar end.
Side note, you can also account for how your hands will naturally rotate while you’re gripping the handlebars so that the tape tightens as your ride rather than loosens. I do not know how to put this in words.